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Nationally, the percentage of retailers refusing to sell cigarettes to minors was 71.2%. There remains a nine-point gap between this figure and the government's stated goal to achieve minimum eighty percent compliance over the next several years. Since 1999, the percentage of retailers likely to refuse a sale has moved forward only marginally, and by an amount that is within the statistical margin of error. Closing the nine-point gap means more significant gains have to be made, and at faster pace than has been the case recently.
To achieve the target, efforts need to be focused. Campaigns need to be directed at those pockets of the retail population and those circumstances preventing overall compliance from rising above current levels and short of the eighty percent objective. The data from the latest survey has helped isolate remaining segments with lower compliance: boys continue to have an easier time than girls buying cigarettes, as do older teens; youngest clerks are more likely than older ones to be willing to sell to minors; compliance is weaker in independent convenience stores and gas station outlets than in other channels; Quebec continues to report the lowest rate of provincial compliance, while individual cities like Halifax, Bathurst, Montreal and Quebec City report retailer compliance levels lower than others visited.
At the same time that the latest data isolates where the most work remains to be done, it shows that the underpinnings of the posted national rate of compliance continue to strengthen. The data has identified several circumstances, regions and retail segments in which the eighty percent goal has already been reached and even surpassed. Despite a national compliance figure that suggests progress has been slow, the fact is that there are more segments of strength than there are of remaining weakness in the battle to drive retailer sales compliance higher. In 2002, two-thirds of the cities we visited already reported compliance rates about or above eighty percent. So too did vendors in three of the five retail classes of trade we visited. More than four-fifths of retailers refused to sell when fifteen year olds were involved, and a higher percentage of retailers than ever refused a sale outright, even without asking for ID.
The challenge of the next few years is to hold successes like these while registering gains across those variables where refusal rates remain below target. More needs to be done to improve retailer sales-to-minors compliance in a handful of Canada's largest cities, in independent stores and gas outlets, and when older teens are attempting to buy. Regarding other aspects of the tobacco laws, including the posting of health warning and age restriction signs, the majority of retailers are complying at least in part, but we are no closer to full and proper compliance than we were in 2000.
The results of the current survey should serve as point of departure for interested parties to understand where and why compliance gaps continue to exist, to understand regional differences and to debate demonstrated best practices. From such review and dialogue must emerge the strategies to drive retailer compliance with the tobacco laws to the next level.


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Six months in, Facebook News remains a question mark to publishers
Publishers who are used to seeing Facebook launch a new product with much fanfare, then have momentum fizzle, are starting to get a familiar feeling.
Six months after a glitzy launch announcement, Facebook News is still not available to all U.S. users as a tab, and has only been available to all U.S. users in the bookmark section of the app since April. A Facebook spokesperson said that “millions” of people use the News tab today, but would not be more specific. And sources at seven different publishers in the tab say that there is not much to get excited about yet as Facebook continues to tinker with the product.
And while Facebook has begun taking some tentative steps to promote News, mostly using editorial collections of stories around major events sourced from News participants called news digests, Facebook ads that will promote News are not going to be rolled out until later in the year.
The checks that Facebook cut to many of the largest publishers participating in News buy Facebook time to experiment, in ways that an ad-powered revenue-sharing program wouldn’t have. And sources at many participating publishers say that Facebook was careful to stress that it would take its time with Facebook News.
“They were very clear that it was going to be slow,” a source at one news publisher participating in News said. “They had a lot to experiment with…Watch took a long time to find its audience too.”
But even with those expectations set, some participants have begun to worry that News has slid down Facebook’s list of priorities. When Facebook rolled out the COVID-19 Information Center, a product designed to share the latest information about the pandemic, and stuck it at the top of users’ news feeds, some saw a different product solving precisely the kind of problem they thought the News tab was going to solve.
“I would have thought they’d want to redirect people to news,” one said.
For most of those users, News lives in the bookmark section of Facebook’s mobile app along with other Facebook products, including Facebook Marketplace and Facebook Dating, where only a small percentage of those users engage with it. A Facebook spokesperson said engagement has increased recently, but did not provide more specifics.
If a user engages with News regularly, Facebook automatically migrates the product out of the menu and into that user’s tabs.
Some participants are trying to establish more direct relationships with News tab readers. A few publishers, including Thrillist and the New York Daily News, have been experimenting with a “follow” button that would allow Facebook users to get more of their content. Sources at two publishers using the tab say that they do not have any way to tell what effect the buttons are having.
Facebook referral traffic has played a major role in the content consumption spikes publishers have experienced over the past two months. Facebook referrals grew 44% month over month from February to March 2020. And while the surge in traffic declined somewhat the following month, referrals from Facebook in April 2020 were up 80% year over year, according to Parsely data.
But publishers say that it is difficult to have a firm opinion about how News is faring because they do not have the data necessary to draw any conclusions. Facebook’s product team hasn’t yet made it possible for publishers to distinguish Facebook News referrals from referrals that come from other parts of Facebook, such as news feed. That capability is in the works, according to a source inside Facebook.
“When you don’t know how many people are using it, and what they’re doing, it’s like, ‘What’s the point?’” a source at a second publisher participating in News said. “There are more pressing things to worry about.”
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domain: news


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Jason West and Vince Zampella, Ex Infinity Ward staff and creators of the multi-billion dollar Call of Duty franchise, announced the formation of a new development studio Respawn Entertainment. The move positions the Respawn Entertainment leadership team as the owners of the intellectual property they create with a focus on creating state-of-the-art gaming experiences for global audiences.
Respawn is pleased to also announce that it has awarded Electronic Arts, through the distinguished EA Partners program, exclusive worldwide publishing and distribution rights to future games.
“Respawn Entertainment marks a fresh start for Jason and me,” said Vince Zampella, General Manager of Respawn Entertainment. “For the past decade we led a great development team and poured our hearts into creating an epic game franchise. We’re very proud of what we built — and proud that so many millions of fans enjoyed those games. Today we hope to do it all over again - open a new studio, hire a great team, and create brand new games with a new partner, EA.”
“We’re excited,” added Jason West, President of Respawn Entertainment. “Now that the team is in control of the games and brands, we can ensure that the fans are treated as well as they deserve.”
Frank Gibeau, President of the EA Games states that Jason and Vince are two of the top creative leaders in the entertainment industry and EA are honored to be their partners to give them the support they need to hire a team. The studio is currently assembling a world-class team of designers, artists and engineers for their first title, but It is not yet clear if Todd Alderman and Francesco Gigliotti, who have also left Infinity Ward will become part of the team for Respawn Entertainment.
With such leading key members of the Call of Duty franchise working on a new title for EA Games, this could potentially be the successor to Modern Warfare and blow its domination within the industry to pieces. West and Zampella have not yet announced what the first title from Respawn might be and if it would directly compete with Call of Duty, but in an interview with LA Times, West did say he expected it to be of “huge, summer blockbuster” scale - adding that they would consider turning their games into films, comic books and other media.


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How much more connected could we be? Much more and much faster, says 5G. 5G, or fifth generation tech, the next wave of fast mobile broadband networks is much awaited, as world over telcos are preparing to launch 5G technology for much higher speed and quality in connectivity.
While India still struggles with 4G, the government wants to make sure India doesn’t miss the bus on 5G. Plans to auction 5G spectrum are all set, where in, the government is asking for suggested prices for airwaves in the 3400 MHz to 3600 MHz bands.
5G was poised to hit international markets by 2020, but might actually make an appearance in 2019 itself. In fact, KT Corp, the South Korean carrier might launch 5G services in the coming Winter Olympics in 2018. In the US, 5G trials are in progress at AT&T and Verizon. According to reports, Verizon is trying out a 5G wireless service in collaboration with Sweden’s Ericsson in eleven markets in the US. A commercial launch is expected next year.
US telecom regulator, Federal Communications Commission (FCC), has marked 2020 for launching 5G in the US. In Japan, Ericsson has joined hands with NTT DoCoMo and Intel to create a 5G trial environment in central Tokyo, beginning next year.
Also, according to reports, Fang Zheng, vice general manager of the WLAN office of ZTE Corp, has said that the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao bridge, the world’s longest cross-sea bridge, will work towards offering 5G service in the future. Indian tech company, Tech Mahindra is also preparing for 5G rollouts in the international market.
Leading smartphone makers, including Nokia, Oppo and Lenovo are among the major brands that have reportedly already started working on their 5G phones. OnePlus also plans to launch its 5G phone on 2019.
5G’s never-before-seen download speed of 20 GBs/second as opposed to 1 GB/second on a 4G network, will likely disrupt the smart phone and telco markets. To give an example, with 5G, a user will have the capability to download a 3-hour HD movie in less than a second on a smartphone. This would be possible because 5G network will deliver data with under a millisecond’s delay, a blink of an eye. Compare that with around 70 milliseconds on a 4G network. The next generation might well become strangers to buffering during streaming sessions, as 5G networks would ensure data transmissions at incredible speeds.
5G technology might change much more than just smart phone usage. It could virtually change society as we know it. Society will likely become even more connected in ways never conceived before. The possibilities that 5G will bring will be seen in modern-day facilities such as machine-to-machine (M2M) communications, Internet of Things (IoT), smart cities, autonomous vehicles, remote control surgery, augmented reality, and much more.
Wireless machines will be able to communicate with the mere help of sensors, which in turn could spell wonders for all smart devices on a city level, such as smart cities, smart grids, smart health, and smart transportation. With such power, a person could operate an entire household sitting from a remote position.
The spectrum bands that 5G networks could run on include 3400 MHz, 3500 MHz, and 3600 MHz bands. The ideal band airwaves for the first wave of 5G are 3500 MHz. Going forward, millimetre wave spectrum may play a important role in 5G networks. The use of millimetre waves could pose challenges of 5G frequencies being blocked by buildings and losing their intensity over longer distances. Still, overall, the picture looks good.
The Trai (Telecom Regulatory Authority of India) will be discussing to arrive at the base price of 5G airwaves proposed to be auctioned. The DoT (Department of Telecom) is likely to release a policy on the use of higher band spectrum, which includes 5G airwaves. A data-heavy wireless technology such as 5G will definitely require the proper regulations in India.
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Mexico, the Latino neighbor of the United States, has recently introduced a renewed enthusiasm towards DeFi and cryptocurrency markets. Eduardo Murat Hinojosa is a representative in the federal legislative machinery. Hinojosa has recently told media that he is working on crypto favoring legal precedent for clearing obstacles in the way of crypto adoption by corporations in the region.
The legislative framework is under construction at the Chamber of Deputies, which is equivalent to the lower house in the Mexican congressional system. To show his support for Bitcoin’s popularity and mainstream adoption, Hinojosa has also changed his Twitter profile picture with a Bitcoin laser eyes avatar. After the big announcement by El Salvador President for crypto adoption, more Latin American countries seem to take an interest in cryptocurrencies.
Latin American Countries to Transform their Economy with Crypto Promotion
El Salvador and Mexico are not the only Latin American nations that have woken up to the crypto promotion economic boom idea. More tropical nations are making a beeline for taking their part in the ongoing crypto FOMO in the region. The highly incentivized invitations by the El Salvador president, Nayib Bukule, might have broken lose a crypto epidemic in the Latin American territory.
Smaller nations with a promising crypto outlook like Paraguay, Argentina, Brazil, Panama, and Colombia can be added to the list of such countries. By making legal sanctions, the lawmakers and government of these regions are trying to boost their economy and giving their residents a chance to get out of the rat race created by the central bank policies. A sizeable number of citizens in these regions are blue-collar workers who are part of the informal economy.
Amazon Managed Blockchain (AMB) has posted a vacancy online, searching for a new head of department. The candidate is required to have extensive experience with the DeFi applications and possess blockchain technology expertise. The candidates would be responsible for cultivating the blockchain section for Amazon Web Service or AWS.
It should be noted that AWS is considered to be one of the largest fintech enterprises in the world, next in value to tech giants like Google. A few months ago, AMB started allowing EVM-based applications to go live on their cloud platform. It is also synced with the Ethereum blockchain network through public nodes. Amazon may want to launch new products in the DeFi space shortly.


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The UpTake: E-commerce sites might think that email is an old-fashioned way to reach customers, but with the ability to make these missives personalized, that’s all changed.
While organic search is still the leading way for customers to find e-commerce sites and pull out their credit cards to buy, a new study by online retail analytics firm Custora released today found that customer acquisition via old-fashioned e-mail has quadrupled over the last four years.
Email customer acquisition now represents 6.84 percent of traffic acquired compared to 9.82 percent of customers acquired via organic search, which is the top method of acquisition. Social media outlets score much lower, the study found.
We asked Aaron Goodman, lead data scientist at New York-based Custora about this finding via email (yeah, for q and a’s there is no beating it). He said that the increase occurred because brands have tailored email marketing campaigns to fit personalized tastes.
“This means of engaging with customers is more sophisticated, directly incorporating data findings of shopping trends and habits to help impact messaging style, discounts and giveaways, and other specificities to make an email that much more enticing and relevant to customers,” he says. “This relevancy helps offer customers what they want, as well as draw back fleeing users.”
Facebook, by contrast, results in a mere 0.17 percent of customer acquisition, while Twitter represents less than .01 percent.
Another surprising stat: even though fashion brands find their best customers in densely populated coastal areas such as New York, Los Angeles, Boston and Portland, Oregon, the most valuable online shoppers tend to come from rural states. (Reason: they have fewer options for buying specialty goods locally.)
In other words, targeting customers in rural states is a great idea, he says.
“Not many companies are doing this now but it is a great opportunity to address an underserved market,” Goodman says. “Simply put, many customers living in rural areas do not have access to the type of storefronts that those in major metropolitan cities do. Retailers can now reach these rural customers digitally, through their website, via email marketing campaigns, and by investing in geo-targeted display ads. When retailers are targeting rural shoppers, they should also think about pain points of these customers, such as shipping costs and shipping time, and how to best address these.”
Custora, a customer acquisition and retention platform that provides analytics to online retailers, says this is just the first of what it says will be a series of reports examining emerging e-commerce customer acquisition trends.
For more information:


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The existing Chromecast dongle will be some three years old this September which means that it’s time for Google to launch a new model that’s more capable than its predecessor. According to a report, a new Chromecast is now in the pipeline which has support for Bluetooth. The unannounced dongle has actually been spotted at the FCC where it has made its customary stop to receive the appropriate certification.
It’s a bit too soon to be sure if it will be possible to use Bluetooth headphones with the new Chromecast dongle as nothing is known about this device so far. Whether or not it will be possible to use Bluetooth keyboards and gamepads with the dongle remains a mystery as well.
Google hasn’t said anything at this point in time so there’s no information about what it’s planning with this Bluetooth support. What the filing reveals for sure is that this is a new Chromecast dongle, an upgraded version of the existing Chromecast, not to be confused with the Chromecast Ultra.
The timing of this filing is right as well given that we’re weeks away from Google’s annual developers’ conference, the I/O 2018. The company has used this stage many times in the past to launch new hardware so if it does have a new Chromecast dongle in the pipeline, we can expect the company to talk about it at I/O 2018.


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China is muscling tech firms and investors need to pay attention — this could impact future earnings, says Michael Yoshikami.» Read More
Brinker International Inc. rose$. 24 or. 5 percent, to $46.07. Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc. rose $5.63 or. 8 percent, to $679.99. Domino's Pizza Inc. rose$. 12 or. 2 percent, to $73.99.
McDonald's and its franchisees can be held liable in complaints that the company violated employee rights, an official at the U.S. NLRB said.
July 29- McDonald's Corp, not just its franchisees, can be held liable in complaints that the company violated employee rights, an official at the U.S. NLRB general counsel Richard Griffin Jr. wrote in the letter that of the 181 complaints filed against the fast-food chain since November 2012 in connection with employee protests, 43 had merit.
SHANGHAI/ HONG KONG, July 30- When inspectors visited Shanghai Husi Food Co Ltd earlier this summer, the production line at the plant now at the centre of an international food scandal appeared in good order, with fresh meat being handled by properly-attired workers and supervisors keeping a watchful eye over the process.
McDonald's says it has been notified by a labor regulator that it can be named as a "joint employer" for workers in its franchise-owned restaurants.
The decision is pivotal because it could expose McDonald's Corp. to liability for management practices in those locations. The same is true for many other fast-food chains, including Burger King and Yum Brands, which owns Taco Bell, KFC and Pizza hut.
Insight to uncertainty around McDonald's meat coming from China, and the impact to its stock and earnings, with CNBC's Sara Eisen, and Will Slabaugh, Stephens Inc.
Some of the names on the move ahead of the open.
Japanese company withdraws earnings guidance and works on a contingency plan after a major meat supplier in China was shut down by regulators.
TOKYO— McDonald's in Japan is increasing its checks on chicken from vendors in China and Thailand after allegations a Chinese supplier sold expired chicken. The U.S. fast-food chain's Japan unit on Tuesday withdrew this year's earnings and sales forecasts, citing uncertainties from the food scandal.
*McDonald's Japan has changed suppliers after scandal in China. TOKYO, July 29- McDonald's Holdings Co withdrew its earnings guidance for the year on Tuesday and said it was working on a contingency plan after a major meat supplier in China was shut down by regulators for food safety breaches.
Brinker International Inc. rose$. 11 or. 2 percent, to $45.32. Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc. rose $4.43 or. 7 percent, to $678.01. Darden Restaurants Inc. rose$. 26 or. 6 percent, to $44.92.
Brinker International Inc. rose$. 20 or. 4 percent, to $45.41. Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc. rose $1.50 or. 2 percent, to $675.08. Darden Restaurants Inc. rose$. 35 or. 8 percent, to $45.01.
Chinese McDonald's have pulled Husi's meat from shelves; now many stores are only serving fries, drinks and desserts. NBC News reports.
Brinker International Inc. rose$. 20 or. 4 percent, to $45.41. Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc. rose $3.93 or. 6 percent, to $677.51. Darden Restaurants Inc. rose$. 12 or. 3 percent, to $44.78.
*China ops to come under direct control of U.S. headquarters. "This is my company and events like these have a personal toll... they simply don't represent the values I stand for or those of my company," Sheldon Lavin, the millionaire chairman, CEO and owner of Illinois- based OSI Group LLC told a news conference in Shanghai.
The president of OSI Group, David G. McDonald, declined to give details of what the company has found at Shanghai Husi Food Co. A Shanghai TV station reported last week that Husi sold expired beef and chicken to restaurants including McDonald's and KFC.
SHANGHAI, July 28- The head of U.S. meat supplier OSI Group, the parent company of a Chinese firm at the center of a food safety scandal, will hold a news conference in Shanghai later on Monday, as McDonald's Corp struck more meat dishes off its menus in China.
Homegrown fast food chains have long played second fiddle to Western brands in China but things may be in for a change after the latest food scare.
Shanghai Husi Food Co Ltd, owned by Illinois- based OSI Group LLC, is at the center of a major food safety scandal, which has spread from China to Hong Kong and Japan, over allegations it mixed fresh and expired meat.


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Since it’s the holiday season, it means that many people are on vacation to play Apex Legends or have a new system for playing it. This increase in players means an increase in new discoveries in the game. There are more bugs than features, such as the abuse of endless slides on a PC discovered a few days ago. Now, someone recently shared a trick to help deal with those nasty knockdown shields.
This Apex Legends trick, shared on the Apex University subreddit, isn’t necessarily new, but it must have been useful to many, with about 2,000 votes and about 90 comments in the post. Instead of trying to destroy or evade the enemy’s knockdown shield after knocking on the enemy, poster bert4925 suggests entering the enemy’s finisher before canceling the enemy immediately. Most players run the finisher and either put the controller down or release the shield button, giving other players the opportunity to quickly shoot unshielded enemies.
The reply seems to be very grateful for this tip, commenting that many people can’t believe they never thought of doing it themselves. One commentator reminded everyone that if knocked, the shield button should not be released until the finisher reaches a point where it cannot be canceled. This is to avoid what happens to them.
Instead of dealing with the knockdown shield block, use the finisher to cancel and shoot down enemies to end in the middle of the battle. from r / apex university
Another thing discovered in this week’s Apex Legend was what happens when you try to install one of the new Trident vehicles in a place it doesn’t belong to. While running over his teammates, he tried to install a new Season 7 vehicle at the doorway of the building, and his teammates were launched into the stratosphere. According to the poster, this event crashed the game for them and their team.
Regarding other discoveries made about Apex Legend, the video for the next event was discovered when the advertised tweet was discovered on Twitter. The new collection event will feature the acquisition of Boxing Ringtown in Olympus, featuring everyone’s favorite smiling robot, Pathfinder. The event will also include some stylish new skins, including special skins for Pathfinder featuring unique animations on the legendary selection screen.
In connection with this new Pathfinder-centric content, there is a new “Story from Outland” video about the hunting of him and his creators. Also, according to the official page, which appears to have been posted prematurely, the new trailer will be released on Tuesday, December 29th.
Apex Legends is available for PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X / S, and mobile and switch versions are under development.
Related forums: Game discussion


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Ooredoo Oman has reported a 37.2 per cent decline in its net profit for the year ended December 31, 2020. The company’s net profit dropped to RO21.3mn for the full year 2020 compared with RO33.9mn recorded in the previous year.
Ooredoo’s revenues decreased by 7.2 per cent to RO265mn in 2020 from RO285.5mn recorded in 2019. The decline in revenues was driven by lower mobile revenue, Ooredoo said in its yearly financial report submitted to the Muscat Securities Market.
Ooredoo’s total number of customers at the end of 2020 stood at 2,795,424. Prepaid mobile customer base decreased by 8.9 per cent to 2,199,348 users as of the end of December 2020 from 2,415,417 customers a year ago.
The company’s fixed service customer base slightly increased by 0.1 per cent to 168,870 customers at the end of 2020, while mobile postpaid customer base grew by 52.5 per cent to 427,206 customers as of the end of 2020 compared to 279,467 customers a year ago.
Ooredoo’s board of directors, in their meeting on Thursday, decided to recommend to shareholders a dividend payment of 25bz per share for 2020. The dividend payment is subject to approval of the shareholders at the annual general meeting on March 18.
The telecom service provider, in its yearly report, said that its 5G rollout is progressing well and the company has an aggressive plan to rollout 500 sites to support Oman’s communications needs way into the future.
‘We are excited to be leading the way with 5G, successfully launching consumer services in April, and at the height of lockdown. It was closely followed by 5G business services in August. And as we ended the year, we already offer excellent value plans, which are available to an ever-expanding number of locations across Oman,’ Ooredoo said.
The company said it will be diversifying into new business revenue streams including IoT, ICT, d2c, all of which are in different stages of development and need to be nurtured.


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Retailers are looking to exclusive designers, celebrity partnerships or hot properties to bring new, fashionable apparel options to customers.
Muhammad Ali Enterprises has signed two new accessory partners in Canada for the brand of the iconic boxer.
Sears Holdings has created a new business unit–Shop Your Way Brands–to develop entertainment-driven lifestyle brands.
Skechers is partnering with MYPLASH for a reloadable prepaid MasterCard for teens and young adults branded with Skechers’ BOBS line.
The Von Dutch clothing brand is expanding its reach around the world with newly established licensing programs and agent appointments in Latin America and India.
Apparel brand Sportiqe is partnering with legendary rock-and-roll band the Grateful Dead for its first range of vintage-inspired apparel.
Muhammad Ali Enterprises has inked two new deals for licensees for its Muhammad Ali brand.
Cherokee's current chief financial officer Mark DiSiena has resigned and Jason Boling has been elected by the board of directors to fill his role.
Discovery Communications has partnered with Olaes Enterprises for a range of Animal Planet-branded apparel for young men and boys in the U.S.
Elvis Presley Enterprises has added two new partners in Canada, in a duo of deals brokered by Studio Licensing.
Santoro has announced a raft of new partners around the world for its Gorjuss art brand.
HSN is celebrating the arrival of spring with the launch of new collections from Christian Siriano, June Ambrose, Padma Lakshmi and Iris Apfel during its upcoming Spring Fashion event.
PVH has signed a new three-year deal with Concept One Accessories for Izod-branded headwear for boys and men.
The Trump Organization has appointed P&L Global Network as the licensing agency for the Donald J. Trump Signature Collection and Trump Home brands in Latin America.
SEGA Europe has partnered with TVMania for a new range of Sonic the Hedgehog apparel and accessories in the G/A/S territories.
The U.S. Postal Service has teamed up with apparel company Wahconah Group for apparel and accessories inspired by its motto: Neither snow nor rain nor heat nor gloom of night stay these couriers from the swift completion of their appointed rounds.
The Brand Liaison has signed on to rep the designer and artist Debbie Brooks Designs for licensing.
Home décor designer Jonathan Adler has teamed up with United Legwear Company to create a line of legwear.
Perry Ellis has tapped Delta Galil Industries USA to bring its Original Penguin brand to men's underwear.
WWE and Kmart today have teamed up for exclusive children’s apparel line from John Cena.
With a multi-platform methodology for content and merchandise, Disney Consumer Products is building a 365-day super franchise for decades to come for The Avengers.
©2013 ADVANSTAR COMMUNICATIONS INC. All rights reserved.


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A DERFA survey back in 2013 found that the average age of farmers in the UK was 59, at that time. No doubt that age has crept up a bit since then. But dairy farming is changing and a new generation of young farmers, are bringing new ideas, mixing tradition with new technology and connecting with consumers through social media.
One of them is Ollie Hobbs, son of Free Range Dairy farmers Jerry & Jenni Hobbs, at Barhouse Farm, in Gloucestershire.
The family have been supplying to free range milk from their 200 cow herd, to Cotteswold Dairy, for three and a half years. When Ollie finished his degree at Harper Adams in 2018, he took some time to explore the world but wanted to return home to the farm.
As with many family farm businesses, Jerry & Jenni looked at how they could grow their business and generate more income, whilst enabling their offspring to build something for themselves. Back in 2018, this led to the launch of ‘Wholly Gelato’, run by daughter Emily, who has attracted customers from far and wide with a range of fantastic gelato flavours.
In October this year, Ollie launched an on-farm milk vending machine, offering super-fresh milk straight from the herd at Barhouse Farm. Here Ollie explains a little more about his new venture here and his aims for the future:
“With market volatility and unstable milk prices my sister and I didn’t want to come back to the farm full-time and put a strain on the business financially, therefore diversification routes seemed the most feasible option.
After the positive start to Emily’s gelato venture we had an increasing number of customers asking if we would start selling our own milk. So, after obtaining a LEADER grant, I was able to begin selling our own free-range milk through a Milkbot vending machine, which we hope will compliment the gelato sales. Although we are only selling a small percentage of our total milk production through the vending machine, at least we know every litre sold through it has a healthy profit margin, which is nice for any dairy farmer to see!
We hope to not only sell more of our own produce on farm, but are also keen to educate the general public, who come to our farm, about the health benefits of dairy and counteract some of the negative themes portrayed about agriculture in the media“.
In an industry that has become so down trodden, so undervalued and misunderstood, there is a new dawn that brings new hope for the future and it is led by young farmers like Ollie ‘having a go’ and giving new life to milk. We hope the Pasture Promise scheme, with our support, can give others the confidence and encouragement they need to set up more initiatives like this and we hope you will support them. They are helping to bring back great tasting free range milk and to help people understand the true value of cows in fields.


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In celebration of the 25th anniversary of the Super Mario Bros. game, Nintendo on Thursday released red Wii and DSi XL bundles, as well as the new Wii Remote Plus.
The limited-edition lineup will be available in North America on Nov. 7.
First up is a red Wii bundle, which includes a red Wii console, the "Super Mario Bros." Wii game, a new red Wii Remote Plus controller, Wii sports, and a red Nunchuck controller. It will sell for $199.99, and is available for pre-order now.
The red Nintendo DSi XL bundle, meanwhile, includes a red DSi XL with special artwork, the "Mario Kart" DS video game, three pre-installed titles and built-in software, including "Brain Age Express: Arts & Letters" and "Brain Age Express: Math and Photo Clock." The bundle also add a large, red stylus. It will sell for $179.99 and is also available for pre-order.
Nintendo also announced the Wii Remote Plus, which adds Wii MotionPlus functionality. It will become the standard Wii controller going forward and will be included in upcoming Wii hardware packages and bundles. It will be sold separately for $39.99, or bundled with the new FlingSmash motion control game for $49.99.
"Whether shoppers want to add a cool new look to their gaming setup or expand their supply of controllers with an exciting game, Nintendo offers a great value for the holidays," Marc Franklin, Nintendo of America's director of public relations, said in a statement. "For anyone who is still on the fence about whether to join the world of video games, we're offering many fun, easy, economical ways to get involved."
Earlier this week, Netflix announced that Wii users will no longer need a disc to stream its Watch Instantly content from the console. The next big launch for Nintendo is expected to be its 3DS, which should launch in the U.S. in March for $300.


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The presidential candidate of Labour Party (LP) in the 2023 elections, Peter Obi, has urged the Commonwealth nations to pay special attention to small businesses.
This, he said, will enable them to achieve sustainable growth and development across its countries.
Mr Obi, a former governor of Anambra State, underscored the importance of Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) to global economic growth and rapid expansion.
He made the remarks in a statement in Lagos on Monday.
He said this at a global conference organised by the Bangladesh Government in conjunction with the Commonwealth Enterprise and Investment Council, in Dhaka, Bangladesh.
Mr Obi also explained why small businesses were the engine of growth across the globe, especially in areas of job creation, innovation, and domestic investment.
“If we enhance the functionality and impacts of SMEs across Commonwealth countries through formalisation and internationalisation, we would have done it across the world with lives, communities, and economies positively impacted.
“Endowed with a population of about 2.5 billion people, a home to over a billion young consumers and exports of over $1 trillion, the need for better support for SMEs cannot be over-emphasised.
“The small businesses, especially in developing and emerging markets, face many challenges arising from a lack of formalisation and internationalization.
“Therefore, many small businesses are not registered and licensed and lack international affiliations and barely exploit the benefits of international trade, which limits the growth opportunities of both the SMEs and the countries.
“To harness the full contributions and impacts of SMEs, proper reforms such as formalisation and internationalization are needed to address the identified challenges,” he said.
Mr Obi explained that formalisation involved bringing SMEs into the formal economy through registration of their businesses and complying with legal and regulatory requirements.
He said expectedly, the process of formalisation would be beneficial not only to the SMEs but the overall business environment and economic stability.
The former governor added that such significant segments of SMEs operated in the informal sector due to a lack of resources or awareness of the formalization benefits.
The LP presidential candidate argued in his address at the international conference that SMEs were emerging as the undisputed engine of rapid economic expansion and growth globally.
Mr Obi noted that “World Bank records (2020) showed that SMEs account for roughly 90 per cent of businesses and more than 50 per cent of jobs created globally.”
He said while the formal SMEs contributed up to 40 per cent of national income (GDP) in Developing and Emerging Markets (DEMs) their impact and contribution were significantly higher when informal ones were included.
According to him, in Bangladesh, SMEs contribute about 40 per cent to GDP, in Nigeria 48 per cent and China 60 per cent with about seven out of every 10 formal jobs created by SMEs.
The former Anambra governor said the same immense impact in India where SMEs accounted for over 40 per cent of the total workforce.
Mr Obi noted that this limited their access to credit, markets, and government support which consequently results in reduced investment, innovation, and growth opportunities.
The former governor further explained that this was critical, especially to commonwealth nations, as the commonwealth controlled a combined wealth of about $150 trillion.
He said: “This is over 10 times their combined GDP of about $14.5 trillion today, and over 30 times the global trade and export value of about $4.8 trillion.
“Hence, these untapped benefits the Commonwealth despite controlling one-third of the global population only contributes below 15 per cent of the World GDP of $100 trillion and with a global GDP per capita of $10,700.
“While that of the commonwealth is 3,500 dollars, this shows a huge growth potential, which can be enhanced by investment in SMEs where the bulk of the youths are domiciled, especially within the commonwealth family.
“SMEs in Commonwealth countries are essential drivers of economic development and poverty reduction. Formalisation and internationalization are crucial pathways to unlocking their potential, fostering innovation, and increasing competitiveness.
“Even though challenges are many supportive policies, capacity-building initiatives, and strategic partnerships can empower SMEs to thrive in the global economy.
“And by investing in the formalisation and internationalization of SMEs, the sustainable socio-economic growth and development of Commonwealth Organisation and Countries can be significantly enhanced.”
Mr Obi said to achieve this, it would require a high level of involvement of all stakeholders particularly the Commonwealth organisation and the governments of Commonwealth countries.


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The tariff war against Mexico failed to materialize. But the impacts of the president’s stand will be long-lasting. The threatened action against our southern neighbor was for significantly different reasons than those given in the past. Instead of being used to correct unfair trade practices, they were proposed to foster non-trade policy concerns. And that takes us into uncharted and dangerous places.
Consider China. For decades, its trade policy has been unfair. It erected barriers that included not just tariffs but restrictive regulatory and business relationship requirements as well. It manipulated its currency to keep Chinese products cheap on the world market, suppressing competition.
Those actions meant U.S. consumers and businesses got great deals on Chinese goods, but U.S. company prices were undercut and other countries’ products were priced out of our markets.
But it didn’t stop there. There was and still is a concerted effort to steal the intellectual property of companies from around the world. Though many executives knew they were taking a risk to operate in China and did so nonetheless, that doesn’t dismiss the Chinese behavior.
President after president tried negotiating guarantees that intellectual property would be protected, but those efforts went largely nowhere. The current administration changed tactics and decided that imposing tariffs might force the Chinese to address the intellectual-property issue.
The tariffs on China are directed at correcting unfair trade behavior. That is the traditional and most defensible reason to impose tariffs, even if U.S. businesses and consumers pay the costs.
As for the Mexican tariffs, they were proposed to address a perceived “national emergency” -- illegal immigration. This is a domestic and/or foreign-policy issue that is typically handled through legislative or diplomatic channels. It is clearly not a trade issue.
There is now a new U.S. trade doctrine: Tariffs are acceptable tools to force other countries to take actions that have little or no relationship to trade. Economic power rather than military power is the policy of choice to compel actions on the part of other countries.
Unfortunately, there are real and long-lasting consequences of employing tariffs or tariff threats as a cudgel.
The intention of most trade agreements is to reduce barriers and tariffs. The U.S. has concluded a treaty with Mexico (and Canada). Yet the U.S. still threatened tariffs on Mexico that were outside that agreement.
Why would any country enter into a trade pact if the U.S. could still impose tariffs to further its political, domestic and/or security agendas, even if the country fulfills its responsibilities under the treaty?
The weaponization of tariffs means our trading partners will have to protect themselves. They will do so by becoming less dependent on American products and markets. Many American companies that are innocent bystanders will be harmed.
For example, China can restrict the export of rare earth metals. These are used in a large variety of electronics and China controls the lion’s share of the supply.
The U.S. doesn’t manufacture a lot of electronics. Still, a limitation of Chinese rare earth exports (on “security” grounds) would limit greatly the chances of expanding the industry in the U.S.
To protect its electronics sector, China will likely start accelerating the growth of its own semiconductor industry. Since it is well behind the United States, it has to reduce its ties to the U.S. so that its domestic firms can become insulated from the threats of trade reprisals and restrictions.
Another concern is the agricultural sector. The Chinese import a significant amount of U.S. farm products. However, there are other countries that have the potential to meet China’s agricultural needs.
Undoubtedly, the Chinese will move to help develop alternative agricultural suppliers. That could lead to a potentially large decline in U.S. farm exports to China. It might take an extended period, but it will eventually happen and that would greatly harm the U.S. farmer.
The key point is that the U.S., which has been traditionally viewed as a dependable trade partner, is losing that reputation because tariffs are now considered to be weapons to secure behavior outside the normal trade relationships. And countries are no different than companies: When a business partner stops being dependable, the relationship sours and often ends.


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Amazon is apparently interested in buying Slack Technologies, a move analysts say could allow Amazon to push further into the enterprise.
amazon.com - News, Features, and Slideshows
Prepare your wallets, mortgage your house, and start looking for odd jobs around the neighborhood, because Apple's new iPad mini with Retina display looks to be one of the must-have gadgets of the year. By combining a small frame with a faster processor and a better screen, Apple's taken everything we loved about the original Mini and pumped it up a few notches to keep the tablet competitive against the Android tablets slowly invading its turf. We've already extensively compared two such tablets--Amazon's Kindle Fire HDX and Google's new Nexus 7--but it's time to throw the iPad Mini into the fight and see how it fares against these two 7-inch juggernauts when it comes to specs, price, and ecosystem.
Ask any five IT specialists what cloud computing is, and you're likely to get five different answers. That's partly because cloud computing is merely the latest, broadest development in a trend that's been growing for years.


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Latest figures confirm US broiler processors' production cuts
US broiler chicken slaughter over the past seven weeks has declined
by an average of 3.3% compared to the same time last year, confirming the
planned production cuts announced by major processors several months
Chicken processors (including Tyson Foods,
Pilgrim's Pride and Gold Kist) announced this spring that they would reduce
production during the summer months because of low prices and high storage stock
levels last winter and early spring.
The latest monthly cold storage
report, for data at the end of May, showed 774.827 million pounds of chicken in
the nation's warehouses.
Since the end of May, the USDA's chicken slaughter data show that weekly totals have
varied from 0.5% to nearly 6% below the levels recorded a year
Wholesale chicken prices have rebounded recently, with the USDA
quoting boneless/skinless chicken breasts at $1.35 to $1.40 per pound, compared
to $1.00 to $1.05 on May 1. Leg-quarter prices on Monday were 38 to 39 cents,
nearly double what they were on May 1 when they were quoted at 20 to 21 cents.
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By Adedapo Adesanya
Nigeria’s leading sports marketing and management company, Integral, has secured the exclusive rights to broadcast the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 on free-to-air television.
As a result, the company will once again work with the Nigerian Television Authority (NTA) Network to deliver all content on its free-to-air-platform
This sub-license deal comes from Infront, a Wanda Sports Group company and the International Olympics Committee (IOC) exclusive rights holder for free-to-air distribution rights in Sub-Saharan Africa. The deal is in addition to Integral’s existing Premier League sub-license free-to-air media rights agreement on NTA.
The exclusive package includes TV broadcasts of live events as well as repeats and highlights from the Olympics.
As a result of the collaboration, over 200 hours of sporting content will be available on the NTA Network with 6 to 9 hours of daily content throughout the period of the Games from July 23 to August 8, 2021.
Speaking on the development, Mr Christophe Van Rothem, Infront Associate Director Media rights said: “Our objective is to maximize the reach of the Olympic Games 2020 and this partnership with our trusted partner Integral, will ensure we are able to bring this unique and thrilling event to millions of households in Nigeria.”
According to the Managing Director of Integral, Mrs Abimbola Ilo, “Following our partnership for the Premier League free-to-air rights, we are pleased to be working with Infront again to deliver high-quality sports moments to Nigerians.
“This is an important avenue to showcase the talents and tell the stories of exceptional athletes as they compete on the world’s biggest stage in Tokyo.”
Also speaking on the deal, Mr Yakubu Ibn Mohammed, the Director-General of NTA stated, “As Nigeria’s most popular broadcaster, we are committed to delivering quality content to our viewers and proud to be partnering with Integral again on what promises to be yet another exciting sports event.
“With this partnership, we will once again be bringing the best of premium sports to the widest distribution in Nigeria,” he said.
For Mrs Chichi Nwoko Integral’s Associate Director, Sports Rights and Media Partnership, she added, “We are happy to partner with Infront to bring another exciting major sports event to passionate Nigerian fans.
“As we add to our growing media rights catalogue, Integral is delighted to be at the centre of delivering live sports content to Nigerians yet again.”
Business Post understands that although the ceremony is officially to commence today, activities like men and women football among others with a longer period have started.
Rite Foods to Refresh Athletes at Abeokuta 10km Marathon
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
Athletes participating in the Abeokuta 10km Marathon scheduled for November 13, 2021, will be refreshed, one of the sponsors, Rite Foods Limited, has assured.
The international event, specifically for Nigerians within the country and in the diaspora will start from Oba Alake’s palace and end at the M.K.O Abiola International Stadium, Abeokuta, Ogun State.
It will have five water points at the 2.5km, 5km, 7.5km, and the finishing area, likewise two refreshing points along the route, Rite Foods, makers of the popular Bigi brand, disclosed.
It was learned that the winning prize for the elite category would be $2,000, while the first runner-up and second runner-up will receive $1,500 and $1,000, respectively.
In addition, the overall winner of the special category will go home with N500,000, while the first runner-up and second runner-up will receive N300,000 and N100,000, respectively.
Speaking ahead of the event, the Brand Manager of Rite Foods, Ms Boluwatife Adedugbe, stated that, “The Bigi Table water will be available at all water points to rejuvenate our runners.”
“As we market our products, we have to demonstrate the Bigi brands’ closeness to them; hence Bigi is sponsoring the competition,” Ms Adedugbe further said at a press conference held in Abeokuta on Tuesday, September 14, 2021.
She also noted that the company was ready for the big sporting event, adding that this year’s edition would be different because it will serve as a platform for promoting Nigerian talents that would make the nation proud at the international level.
She stated that since consumers are at the core of the Bigi brand, sponsoring a worthy initiative like the Abeokuta marathon shows Rite Foods care about their wellbeing, disclosing that the brand was the refreshing sponsor in 2019 and has taken the step further as the title sponsor for this year’s event.
Also speaking, the Ogun State Commissioner for Youths and Sports, Mr Kehinde Oluwadare, expressed Governor Dapo Abiodun’s goodwill message of commendation to Rite Foods, applauding its gesture of nurturing skills in athletics.
He said the Ogun State government was proud to identify with the sponsors, especially Rite Foods, in creating a platform of social value that would not only build talents but also youth engagement.
“The race will not only discover budding talents but will develop them to greatness, as it is another golden opportunity for youths to engrave their names on the world map,” the Commissioner affirmed.
On his part, Mr Bukola Olopade, the CEO of Nilayo Sports Management Limited, the organisers of the race, extolled Rite Foods’ Bigi for promoting a Nigerian cause and urged other organizations to follow suit.
NPFL, Bet9ja Seal Sponsorship Deal
By Ashemiriogwa Emmanuel
In another exciting round of news for local football, the Nigeria Professional Football League (NPFL) has sealed a sponsorship deal with the country’s foremost sport betting and gaming company, Bet9ja, for the latter to become the official supporter of the former under the betting and gaming category.
The multi-year partnership which was firmed up by the League Management Company (LMC) earlier today will officially take effect from the 2021/2022 NPFL season.
The deal will give Bet9ja the right to associate with the NPFL while participating clubs will benefit from branding placements across all match venues, events, programs of the league, as well as media channels.
With the agreement, the betting company will be featured in content across match broadcasts of the NPFL and its TV channels.
This is to help develop and popularize the nation’s football league and make it more enjoyable for fans to watch and for the clubs’ commercial rewards, while both parties achieve their mutual goals.
In the statement released on the LMC platform, it said “we are glad to have signed up Bet9ja under the betting and gaming category as one of the NPFL partners under our revamped marketing strategy.
“We are optimistic that with this landmark deal with Nigeria’s foremost betting and gaming brand and other gaming brands within our business category and sector will seize the fantastic opportunities created and key into the new NPFL project.
Expressing delight, Bet9ja was quoted in the statement as saying, “We undoubtedly appreciate the vision of the LMC towards the NPFL and happy to be part of this exciting project. Our strategy has always been to stand out and deliver excellent value to our customers and partners. This is a partnership geared towards achieving these goals and one that is built to last.”
Meanwhile, the date for the formal unveiling of the partnership is yet to be revealed along with further details of the agreement as stated by the local league governing body.
Nigerian Gaming Firm Partners Dutch Conglomerate
By Sodeinde Temidayo David
Nigerian fantasy sports company, Fantastic.ng, has sealed a promotional partnership deal with Dutch conglomerate, LambWeston, owners of the Poundo Potato brand in Nigeria.
This partnership was sealed in a bid to capture a share of the $2 billion market as 60 million Nigerians regularly engage in sports betting generating billions in wagers.
Commenting on the development, co-founder of Fantastic Technologies Limited, Mr Felix Okoye, disclosed that the firm was set to convert fans of sport into fans of brands, as it will continue to connect super-engaged audiences across the continent to the thousands of brands who desire their attention.
Speaking on the deal, the Managing Director for LambWeston, Mr Victor Nwachukwu, expressed excitement to work with such a gaming platform.
“Like millions of Nigerians, Dutch people are obsessed with football so for us it was a natural fit to partner with Fantastic in order to amplify our Poundo Potato brand in Nigeria,” he stated.
Fantastic is a unique free-to-play mobile platform offering games such as predict and win, fantasy football and sports trivia.
The Nigerian gaming firm employs a Business to Business to Consumer (B2B2C) model, a business model that makes it possible for Fantastic.ng to sell their product or service in partnership with another firm to an end customer.
The firm generates revenue from users through weekly or monthly subscriptions and companies that can purchase a variety of promotional packages to engage their customers and amplify their brands.
Fantastic has attracted a variety of technology investors since its launch including serial angel investor, Olumide Soyombo of Voltron Capital and Blackaion Capital
While LambWeston is the first corporate partner to come on board, the Fantastic team confirmed they are in talks with multiple parties including one of the largest digital banks in Nigeria and a multinational brewery company.
To support its technology, Fantastic Tech recently completed the acquisition of soccer data and social networking site Sangalo. The company also received a national license from the National Lottery Regulatory Commission which will now allow it to establish the Fantastic brand across Nigeria.
The platform currently has about 10,000 registered users and has processed over two million predictions in 2021.
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Reba, Rascal Flatts, Pat Green, Wynonna Judd, and Sara Evans are among the country stars who are actively encouraging support for the Red Cross holiday giving campaign. All are members of the American Red Cross National Celebrity Cabinet.
The Red Cross holiday giving campaign features an online “Gifts that Save the Day” catalog that enables people to make a tax-deductible charitable donation this holiday season that could provide food and shelter for a disaster victim for a day; a military comfort kit with a robe, phone or music card and other supplies for a wounded warrior; or basic necessities for a family who lost everything in a disaster.
Catalog gifts are contributions toward a Red Cross program area, not a donation to a specific project or item. The donations will be used to provide assistance where it is needed most within the program area; the remaining money is put to use where it is needed most. Many mobile phone owners can also make a $25 donation by texting GIFT to 90999.
“This holiday season, I’m giving the gift of hope by supporting my local American Red Cross,” Reba said in a video message about the campaign. “Instead of sweaters and ties, I’m giving gifts from the Red Cross Holiday Giving Catalog.” Reba also has sent an e-mail to Red Cross supporters nationwide encouraging them to donate this holiday season.
The other artists are using their websites and social networking sites to encourage fans to donate.
Each artists’ work on the holiday campaign is just the latest example of their support of the Red Cross. Click HERE to donate.


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Propelled by strong sales in its consumer business, security software company McAfee Inc. on Thursday reported second quarter net income of $39.4 million, or 25 cents a share, up from $28.7 million, or 18 cents a share in the same quarter last year.
Santa Clara-based McAfee (NYSE:MFE) had revenue of $495 million, a 4 percent increase over the year-ago quarter.
Excluding items, the company would have earned $98.2 million, or 63 cents a share.
Analysts expected, on average, earnings of 60 cents a share on $508 million in revenue.
Looking ahead, the company expects third quarter revenue of $505 million to $520 million, with net income of 29 cents to 33 cents a share.


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Estate agents are lining up to add their voices to the growing chorus of praise for selling with the help of social media platforms.
With the vast majority of home searches now beginning in cyber space, property marketing professionals are working hard to secure their share of the online audience.
Savvy Salespeople Pay Attention to Online Presence
With huge numbers of potential clients regularly using sites such as Twitter, Facebook and Google+ as the base for their internet interactions, savvy salespeople are paying close attention to their online presence, and taking a pro-active stance when it comes to social media sharing.
Estate agents who have already tapped the potential of the social media sphere explain that the combination of industry expertise and an active, credible internet presence is winner when it comes to precision property marketing.
Estate Agents Embrace Social Media Methods
Speaking to The Independent this week, Sarah Brown from online property marketing giant Rightmove explained: “Social media, far from posing as a threat to estate agents, has been embraced by them. Estate agents see this as a great opportunity to engage with future customers within an open forum. There are approximately 2,500 corporate and independent estate agents on Twitter for example.”
One agency which has placed itself in the vanguard of the shift into cyberspace and adoption of social media property marketing is Knight Frank, whose spokesman John Williams explained that decisions to use apps to engage the online audience as the technology emerged had paid dividends – with 50,000 people having already downloaded their search tool the iPad and iPhone.
He added: “We talk to our customers through Twitter and our staff now find vendors through LinkedIn.”


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The brothers of Omega Psi Phi everywhere are going to love the suit Jarran Reed wore to the NFL Draft.
Ezekiel Elliott is really owning the crop top look.
Known for wearing a crop top on the football field, Elliott is also taking the crop top to fashion shows.
Cam Newton attended Thursday’s Lakers-Cavs game in LA to witness the last ever match-up between Kobe and LeBron.
Cam Newton’s pants game is very, very strong.
Russell Westbrook is no stranger to making bold fashion moves.
There is never a bad time to accessorize when you’re JC Coleman.
Dwyane Wade makes some cringe-worthy fashion statements, and this is no exception.
The NBA Draft is as much of a fashion show as it is an event that will dictate the future of multiple basketball players.


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2 Sisters to invest £150m in poultry business
The parent company of 2 Sisters Food Group (2SFG) has announced a £150m investment in its poultry business over the coming three to four years, with state-of-the-art technology and changes that would “revolutionise the supply chain end to end”.
The announcement came as Boparan Holdings revealed that sales and operating profits slumped during the fourth quarter of the year.
The poultry processor said like-for-like sales were down 3% to £773.6m and like-for-like operating profit was down 20.3% to £22.8m in the 13 weeks ending 1 August 2015, due to a “tough operating environment”.
The company said its performance was in line with guidance, in spite of continued price deflation headwinds.
Its strategy was to continue to drive for greater operating efficiency and innovation across all areas of the business and the company said there would be a “continued focus on prudent cost control and tight management of working capital”, as well as work to “drive industry leadership in animal welfare”. Deepening and strengthening relationships with major customers was also a priority, 2SFG said.
2SFG said that, in addition to the major £150m investment in its UK poultry business, it would continue to invest in reducing campylobacter.
“Our aim is to build a better business,” said 2SFG chief executive Ranjit Singh. “During 2015 we focused on costs, efficiency, investment, innovation and deepening customer relationships. The operating environment for our industry remains tough, but we have seen a consistent improvement in our performance across all our divisions, with a 17.5% increase in life-for-like operating profit to £22.8m from Q3 to Q4.
“We are making a number of important investments with the aim of providing our customers and consumers with innovative products, better value and reduced waste. Today we can announce that we are launching a major £150m investment programme in our poultry business that will completely revolutionise our supply chain end-to-end. We are aiming to further align our poultry business with the needs of our customers, creating world-class facilities utilising state-of-the-art technology, and driving efficiency.
“We continue to focus on measures to reduce campylobacter, where we have invested £10m to date. Our efforts have been praised by the Food Standards Agency and have won the approval of major customers.
“Our business transformation continues at pace and with a number of investment programmes in place, I am confident we have the right strategy to meet the needs of our major customers, who increasingly demand long-term, dedicated partnerships with their suppliers.”
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- supply chain
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For one night only, a panel of leading fashion innovators share their visions for the future of fashion from a tech and sustainability perspective in a...
Future Forward - Fashion
Level 6 Terrace Entrance (Circular Quay West Side)
Access and Inclusion
For one night only, a panel of leading fashion innovators share their visions for the future of fashion from a tech and sustainability perspective in a discussion led by RUSSH Editor in Chief Jess Blanch, overlooking stunning Sydney Harbour, Wednesday June 5 at the MCA.
Global fashion innovators, together with boundary breakers in new media and communications will assemble on stage for a one night only special event in Sydney as part of Vivid Ideas Exchange.
Following on from the 2018 sold-out show with fashion leaders from Instagram, Facebook, Amazon and Ksubi, Future Forward Fashion returns to explore the evolving role of technology in fashion entrepreneurship, retail, design, logistics, media and communications. See the future of fashion from a tech and sustainablity perspective, now.
This is a rare occasion to see these agents of change together in a live and intimate setting.


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EADA connects Spanish and Chinese entrepreneurs
EADA continues to build bridges with China, this time, connecting tech startups from Barcelona with innovation companies from the city Shenzhen, known as the Silicon Valley of China for its concentration of 8,000 top tech firm including big guns; Huawei, OnePlus, Tencent o ZTE. Today EADA presented the Third International Competition for Innovation and Entrepreneurship, organised by the city of Shenzhen. The aim is to generate synergies in both entrepreneurship and innovation as well as expanding Chinese technology throughout the world.
Ten cities around the world will provide bases for the competition: Sydney (Australia), Toronto (Canada), Berlin (Germany), Tel Aviv (Israel), Tokyo (Japan), Madrid (Spain), Stockholm (Sweden), Boston (USA), London (United Kingdom) and Silicon Valley (USA). 100 chosen projects from around the world will then meet in Shenzhen where they will compete for prizes in five categories, all related with technological applications: Internet and Mobile Internet, Electronic Science, Industry, Biomedical Sciences and Materials and Energy (including sustainable energy and environmental protection). Projects specializing in FinTech, Internet of Things (IoT) and Artificial Intelligence will sign up and compete directly without applying in the local city presentations of the competition.
Margaret Chen, president of China Club Spain, founder of Optimus Horizon and member of the International Advisory Board de EADA Business School, explained the competition to the attendees: “it is a great opportunity to connect with investors looking to get behind tech-based projects and also to network and get to know the most innovative industries in the world. Shenzhen has become one of the world epicenters for innovation in recent years, all the best ideas from international entrepreneurs can be found in this great Chinese metropolis.”
Entry deadline for projects is the 28 of February, 2019.


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Lots of happenings these past few weeks in the e-commerce universe. In case you missed anything, here are a few headlines you should know about:
Microsoft to Buy Skype for $8.5 Billion: The New York Times reported on Tuesday that Microsoft announced it would buy Skype Global for $8.5 billion in cash, in its largest acquisition ever. In Skype, Microsoft is buying the leader in Internet voice and video communications, with 107 million users per month connected for more than 100 minutes a month on average. That large and active user base represents a major asset, Steven A. Ballmer, Microsoft’s chief executive, said in an interview. “It’s an amazing customer imprint,” Mr. Ballmer said. “And Skype is a verb, as they say.”
Apple Now World’s Most Valuable Brand: Mashable has reported that
Apple has surpassed Microsoft in market capitalization to become the second most valuable U.S. company in 2010, and has superseded Google to become the most valuable consumer-facing brand in the world. This is according to a study published by global research agency Millward Brown. Apple’s brand value jumped 84% to $153.3 billion, driven largely by the company’s success with the iPad and iPhone 4, the study found. Google’s brand declined 2 percent to $111.5 billion. IBM, McDonald’s and Microsoft rounded out the top five.
Gilt Groupe Valued at Roughly $1 Billion: In a bid to expand its e-commerce empire, Gilt Groupe has raised $138 million in its latest financing round, according to an article by Evelyn M. Rusli, in The New York Times’ Dealbook. Best known for its limited sales of women’s and men’s apparel, the Manhattan-based company has raised capital from several new investors, including Goldman Sachs, the media conglomerate Softbank Group, New Enterprise Associates and Draper Fisher Jurvetson Growth, the article stated. Two previous investors, General Atlantic and Matrix Partners, also participated in the round, which values the company at about $1 billion.
Wal-Mart to invest $756 million in Brazil: Wal-Mart Stores said that by the end of the year it will have invested the equivalent of approximately $756 million to expand its operations in Brazil, said a story on Chain Store Age. Marcos Samaha, president of Wal-Mart’s Brazilian subsidiary, said in a statement that 1.2 billion reals ($755 million) will be used to build 80 stores, renovate existing locations and improve logistics.
Luxury goods set for another record year: Reuters has reported that the outlook for the luxury goods market has improved significantly in recent months, boosted by a stronger-than-expected rebound in the United States and Europe and surging demand in China, consultancy Bain & Co said. Bain raised its 2011 growth forecast for luxury sales to 8 percent at constant currencies from a 3-5 percent range, after recent sales data from groups such as LVMH (LVMH.PA), Burberry (BRBY.L), PPR (PRTP.PA) and Tod’s (TOD.MI) comfortably beat market expectations.
Google to Unveil Service to Let Users Stream Their Music: Google plans to introduce its long-awaited service to allow people to upload and store their music collections on the Web and listen to their songs on Android phones or tablets and on computers, according to a New York Times article. The announcement of the new service, a so-called cloud-based music player, will be made on Tuesday at Google I/O, the company’s developers conference here, which will run through Wednesday.


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According to the Colorado Restaurant Association, 9 out of 10 restaurants are having a bumpy ride hiring staff. Several companies are going back to typical procedures, but they don’t have enough employees to tend to clients rushing in.
One Colorado company has done what many want to do, hire lots of staff members in an issue of weeks.
Entire Sol Blend Bar opened up a new area in Sloan’s Lake in October 2020, right at the beginning of Colorado’s 2nd COVID-19 wave. They’ve taken care of to hire 64 employees throughout all 5 of its areas in the last four weeks.
” We’re large followers in purchasing our staff members initially. They take care of our customers,” said Phil Dumontet, CEO of Whole Sol. “We’re actually certain that investing in our staff members will certainly retain them.”
Like several restaurants, Whole Sol had a hard time to hire at. The business began with a 10% pay boost and also motivations began to follow.
” We increased our advantages program. We provide a $50 monthly health gratuity to all employees. It can be made use of towards anything related to your physical or mental wellness, like a fitness center membership, exercise clothes, massage therapies, or a chiropractor. Anything related to your wellness,” Dumontet.
Whole Sol also started offering full healthcare advantages to workers and a $1,000 retention perk after six months of work. These benefits drew in new recruits like Alyssa Romero.
” I’m a runner. If I wanted to obtain some brand-new footwear or a massage therapy, they’ll pay $50 of that. I was actually interested right now when Phil provided that to me,” said Romero.
When Romero isn’t operating at Whole Sol, she’s a student-athlete at Metropolitan State University of Denver. She’s a college youngster who needed revenue and discovered a hiring Whole Sol location near her training course.
She ran toward a market she’s never operated in.
” You constantly hear how business will just work with people with the experience. I had this opportunity, not having experience, to get into it,” said Romero. “I desired a new experience, specifically with me being so young.”
The Colorado Restaurant Association recently created a work board to make it easier for individuals to discover openings within the sector.


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EliSowash writes: In response to recent reports of safety concerns around 3rd party chargers for iDevices, Apple announced today that beginning August 16, 2013, you can trade in your 3rd party adapter and purchase an official Apple charger at a “special price” — $10 USD.
From their website: “To qualify, you must turn in at least one USB power adapter and bring your iPhone, iPad, or iPod to an Apple Retail Store or participating Apple Authorized Service Provider for serial number validation. The special pricing on Apple USB power adapters is limited to one adapter for each iPhone, iPad, and iPod you own and is valid until October 18, 2013.”
MojoKid writes: Think the future of transportation has us all in flying cars like the Jetsons? Think again. That's not something we're likely to see in our lifetime, however we may witness the completion of several "Hyperloop" transport systems designed to get you from point A to point B at breakneck speeds. This is the dream of Tesla founder and CEO Elon Musk, who describes Hyperloop as a "cross between a Concorde, a rail gun, and an air hockey table." Alternately, you can think of it as an enclosed tube that's propped way up off the ground. It would use a magnetic levitation system similar to high-speed bullet trains, except passengers would travel in capsules across a surface with almost no friction. A Colorado company called ET3 (Evacuated Tube Transport) is already working on making Musk's dream a reality by building a similar system and is planning a 3-mile trial run before the end of the year. This is just the beginning of bigger and faster things to come, According to ET3, a six-passenger capsule about the size of an automobile could hit speeds of 4,000 miles per hour on longer distances, such as going across the country or even continents.
MojoKid writes: A leaked tech demo posted to YouTube shows off Motorola's upcoming Moto X smartphone, a seemingly high-end device that is sure to win over a few fans with its wealth of new tricks and features. The Moto X handset, which is launching exclusive to Rogers in Canada (no mention of US market carriers) this August, will be available in black and white, but a key selling point of the device comes from its voice activated features. The tech demo heavily emphasizes Google Now, which Moto X users can engage without touching the device. In the demo, a woman is shown asking Google Now what the weather will be like in Toronto while she types away on a computer, never having to reach down to tap the handset. It was also previously leaked that the Moto X will ship with a 4.4-inch display (1280x720), 1.7GHz dual-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 8960 processor, 2GB of RAM, 16GB of internal storage, 10MP rear-facing camera, 2MP front-facing camera, and of course Android 4.2 Jelly Bean.
MojoKid writes: It's not too often that upcoming glass technology is worth getting excited over, but leave it to Corning to pique our interest. During a recent talk at MIT's Mobile Technology Summit, Dr. Jeffrey Evenson took to the stage to reiterate what it is about Gorilla Glass that makes it such an attractive product (something well evidenced given the majority of smartphones out there today implement it), as well as to give us a preview of what's coming. Having pretty much mastered Gorilla Glass where strength, scratch-resistance and general durability are concerned, the company is now looking to improve-upon it (possibly for Gorilla Glass 4) by making it non-reflective and germ-resistant. Imagine your smartphone sporting this — you'd finally be able to see the screen regardless of how bright the sun behind you is. Unfortunately, it appears that it won't be hitting our phones or tablets that soon. The estimate is "in the next two years."
MojoKid writes: Intel’s Skylake processors won’t launch for some time (the company still needs to release Broadwell at some point, which won’t be out until sometime next year at the earliest), but according to a leaked roadmap slide, we can see some juicy details about Skylake. The chips will be built on Intel's 14nm process node (which we’ll see first on Haswell-E processors), and they’ll also feature AVX 3.2. DDR4 DRAM interface support will be included, as well as support for PCIe 4.0, and Intel’s HD graphics will hit version 9 with reportedly significantly more robust performance.
MojoKid writes: Samsung just unveiled the Galaxy NX, purportedly the world's first interchangeable lens camera with 3G/4G LTE and Wi-Fi connectivity baked in. According to Samsung, the Galaxy NX combines cutting edge optical performance with connectivity capabilities and a bevy of Android applications, all in a single handheld device. Not only does the Galaxy NX connect to Wi-Fi hotspots and offer support for 3G/4G LTE, it also boasts a Photo Suggest feature that provides location-based recommendations of popular photography spots, which itself is sourced from a massive library of images taken by fellow photographers around the globe. As to the actual hardware , the Galaxy NX sports a 20.3-megapixel (effective) APS-C CMOS sensor, 4.8-inch HD TFT display, 1.6GHz quad-core processor, 2GB of RAM, DRIMe IV Image Signal Processor, Advanced Hybrid Auto Focus (AF), 1/6000 sec shutter speed, 8.6fps shooting, 100-25600 ISO range, 16GB of internal memory, microSD card slot, 4360mAh battery, and Android 4.2 Jelly Bean.
bednarz writes: "Is telecommuting the new scapegoat for poor performance? Best Buy, in the midst of a corporate restructuring, has canceled its flexible work program http://www.networkworld.com/news/2013/030513-best-buy-telework-267403.html and expects corporate employees to put in traditional 40-hour work weeks at the retailer's headquarters (they used to be able to work whenever and wherever they wanted). The announcement comes on the heels of Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer's decision to end telecommuting, which ignited a http://www.networkworld.com/news/2013/022813-yahoo-telework-267219.html firestorm of criticism. It also follows news of Best Buy's plans to lay off 400 corporate workers as part of a plan to cut $725 million in costs and restructure its business."
MojoKid writes: "New leaked info from Intel sheds light on how the company's 2014 platforms will challenge ARM products in the ultra light, low power market. At present, the company's efforts in the segment are anchored by Cedar Trail, the 32nm dual-core platform that launched a year ago. To date, all of Intel's platform updates for Atom have focused on lowering power consumption and ramping SoC integration rather than focusing on performance — but Bay Trail will change that. Bay Trail moves Atom to a quad-core, 22nm, out-of-order design. It significantly accelerates the CPU core with burst modes of up to 2.7GHz, and it'll be the first Atom to feature Intel's own graphics processor instead of a licensed core from Imagination Technologies."


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The most common reason for not wanting an electric vehicle (EV) is a concern about a lack of public charging points, research by the AA and ITV has revealed.
A survey conducted for a documentary broadcast in September revealed that 69% cited an absence of chargepoints as a reason not to buy one.
The number of new fully electric cars being sold went up by 175% in the first seven months of the year. However, that is still only 4.7% of total sales. If the UK government it achieve its aim of ending the sale of petrol and diesel vehicles by 2035, public acceptance of electric vehicles needs to rise dramatically.
ITV’s Tonight current affairs series examined how ready people in the UK were to adopt electric motoring. In a survey carried out with the AA, the ITV show asked people in the UK for their opinion on electric cars. Almost half of all drivers (47%) say they will consider buying an electric vehicle when they next change their car, according to the Populus poll of 17,628 AA members.
Women were more likely (49%) to say they would consider an electric car than men (46%), and younger respondents (aged 16-25) were most keen on buying an electric vehicle as their next car.
Geographically, those living in London (56%) were most likely to consider purchasing an electric car as their next vehicle, as were AB social groups (54%).
The most common reasons for not wanting an EV were:
AA members were asked about their level of agreement with a range of statements about electric cars. The top three most agreed with statements were:
Around two-thirds of respondents said they are worried about battery range, while just over half were concerned about how long the car’s batteries will last.
Men were more likely (90%) than women (87%) to agree that EVs are too expensive.
Across age groups, respondents aged 55 and over were most likely to strongly agree that charging an electric car takes too long (37%).
Respondents were then asked to select up to three scenarios that they think would encourage drivers to buy an electric vehicle in priority order:
a) If an EV cost about the same as the equivalent petrol or diesel (47% top three, 26% highest priority)
b) More rapid charging hubs with facilities on the motorway network or the outskirts of towns where EV drivers can charge their car (41% top three, 13% highest priority).
c) More charging stations at places like supermarkets, leisure centres and shopping centres (41% top three, 10% highest priority).
Motoring journalist Ginny Buckley, who is also the founder of the EV motoring news website www.electrifying.com, spoke to experts, car manufacturers, and the transport secretary Grant Shapps about what can be done to quicken the move to cleaner vehicles. Shapps said the UK now has more charging locations than petrol stations, but conceded that there is still work to be done to make motorway charging easier and more widely available.
Reflecting on the traditional internal combustion engined cars, Shapps said: “You’ll look back and think ‘My God, we actually allowed vehicles to pump out noxious fumes, and kids to walk past to go to school and thought nothing of it’.”
While nearly half of the respondents said they would consider buying an electric car as their next vehicle, an overwhelming majority of people said they thought electric cars were too expensive. However, Buckley revealed that while electric cars tend to be more expensive to buy, the lower running costs could mean they are actually cheaper in the long term.
The programme highlighted how research by car manufacturer Peugeot suggested that over an average distance of 145 miles, petrol and diesel drivers would spend a respective £16.50 and £14.90 in a family car. By switching to the electric version, a similar journey would cost just £5.18 when using a standard home chargepoint, though it would cost more than that on most public chargers.
Edmund King OBE, president of the AA told Buckley: “The automotive world is going through a radical transition with more change likely in the next decade than in the last hundred years. We need to help drivers overcome perceived myths about EVs and charging. It is incredibly encouraging that almost half of drivers will consider an EV for their next car.
“Our AA breakdown data shows that EVs are more reliable, but when breakdowns occur they are similar to breakdowns on conventional cars with tyres, wheels and the 12-volt battery accounting for about one-third of problems.
“The AA was proud to be a founding partner of the first World EV Day on 9 September. This event should provide opportunities for individuals, fleets and businesses to find out more about the switch to EVs. We need to take every opportunity available to extol the virtues of EVs and continue to dispel some of the myths.”
Planning for the future the AA has developed its EV expertise, including having the largest group of EV Level 2 trained technicians in the UK, and is now looking to ensure it can support the infrastructure accompanying EV vehicle adoption. As an example, the AA has partnered with several electric charging and energy companies, such as with SWARCO eVolt, to providing even greater assurance and support for EV drivers. As part of this managed services offer, drivers will be supported if they need help at a charge point, or in calls about both the electric car and electric charging infrastructure.
The programme also explored what happens when EVs lose power on the motorways. Ginny Buckley said: “Our programme rightly shows us that some drivers are concerned about the reliability of the charging network particularly on motorways. From my own experience I know how worrying it is to turn up at a motorway service area only to find the charge point out of order and be put at risk of running out of battery power. Our programme helps outline what needs to be done to enable the driver to move to a zero-emission future.”
The AA’s Edmund King raised concerns about how most traditional rescue vehicles cannot charge up electric cars. He said that the majority of electric cars cannot be towed away because it could damage their motors, something which could be particularly worrying for anyone who broke down on a smart motorway. “If an electric vehicle runs out of charge on a motorway, without a hard shoulder, that is very problematic,” he told Tonight, because it requires a large truck to remove it. “And if it’s in a live lane, that can be incredibly dangerous.”
The transport secretary said that the government was looking at this issue, as are the rescue services, which will usually provide electric vehicle users enough power to get to the nearest service area, where their vehicle can then be towed. “We’ve raised concerns about smart motorways anyway, because there aren’t enough laybys,” said Shapps. “Normally in a regular car, if you break down on a motorway, you can freewheel to the layby, if there is one, the hard shoulder, or to an emergency refuge area. In an electric vehicle, that is more difficult.”
Populus received 17,628 responses from AA members to its online poll between 11-18 February 2020.
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In the 1960s animated sitcom The Jetsons, George Jetson commutes to work in his family-size flying car, which miraculously transforms into a briefcase at the [...]
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“Hey BMW, now we’re talking!” BMWs are about to get a personality with the company’s Intelligent Personal Assistant.
The BMW Group is set to revolutionise driving pleasure with the BMW Intelligent Personal Assistant. From March 2019, BMW drivers and passengers will be joined [...]
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Danish shipping company TORM has reached an agreement to acquire four modern MR vessels “at an attractive price point”.
The quartet, built in 2011 by Korean yard Hyundai Mipo, would be purchased for a total consideration of USD 83 million with expected delivery between August and December 2019.
“Looking into an improving demand-supply situation for the transportation of clean petroleum products, we believe that the timing for a fleet expansion with modern vessels is appropriate and underlines the flexibility provided by our strong capital structure,” Jacob Meldgaard, Executive Director, said.
TORM has agreed a conditional term sheet of USD 66 million with an international financial institution on financing of the four MR vessels.
As of today, TORM has CAPEX commitments of around USD 346 million covering the remaining CAPEX on the company’s two LR1 newbuildings with expected delivery in 2019, six MR newbuildings with expected delivery in 2019 and the first quarter of 2020, the four 2011-built second-hand MR vessels and scrubber installations on newbuildings and retrofit vessels.
The company’s current undrawn credit facilities and cash amount to USD 407 million.


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Disney Wonder in Miami
Disney Wonder’s Inaugural Season in New Regional Homeport
Disney Wonder now calls Miami home. Until April 2013, the Wonder will sail from Miami on a brand new set of itineraries: a 4-night Bahamas and a a 5-night Western Caribbean cruise. “Miami is an iconic port of call, recognized for its exciting blend of cultural influences, and is very appealing to our guests,” said Disney Cruise Line Captain Thord Haugen. “While in port, families can enjoy vibrant regional cuisine, pastel skyscrapers, South Beach and eclectic shopping.”
First-Call Ceremony in Miami
Disney Cruise Line hosted local port officials and community leaders onboard the 2,700 passenger Disney Wonder for a plaque exchange ceremony today. These ceremonies are a maritime tradition and an opportunity for the Captain and the ship’s officers to celebrate the inaugural call on a new port, as well as for local officials and leaders to welcome the ship and guests to the community.
Ports of Call on new Itineraries
For the four and five night itineraries that sail from Miami, the ports of call will be:
- Cozumel, Mexico
- Grand Cayman
- Key West
- Nassau, Bahamas
- Disney’s private island, Castaway Cay.
Get Ready for Disney Magic
Wonder’s sister ship, the Disney Magic, will sail from Miami starting on October 2013 on three, four- and five-night itineraries.
The Wonder will be back in 2013
The Wonder departs for the West Coast on April 2013, to start its Alaskan cruise itineraries from Vancouver. It returns to Miami in 2014, to resume another round of four and five night cruises from January until May 2014.
Have you ever cruised with the Disney Wonder?


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Dubai exporters experience strong growth in March
Dubai's exporters continued their impressive start to the year in March.
Figures released by the emirate's Chamber of Commerce showed the value of products and services sent overseas rose to AED 25.5 billion (£4.5 billion) last month. This is an increase of seven per cent when compared to the AED 23.9 billion recorded in February and five per cent higher than during the same period in 2013.
Countries within the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) proved to be the largest destination for Chamber members, with exports to the region accounting for over half the total monthly amount. Transporting products to these nations was worth AED 15.8 billion, equating to a month-to-month increase of 15 per cent.
The rise in the amount of goods shipped to the GCC is partially down to a 33 per cent surge in imports by Saudi Arabia. This made up 35 per cent of total global exports during last month, making the country the number one destination within the Council.
Kuwait was second in line, with exports to the nation increasing by 23 per cent when compared to February. The total value of products and services sent to this location came out at AED 1.8 billion, a ten per cent jump against March 2013.
Meanwhile, exporting to non-GCC countries also recorded month-to-month growth of five per cent, reaching AED 7 billion. However, this represented a drop of four per cent when compared to figures achieved the previous year.
Algeria was named the most important destination, with the nation recording a month-on-month surge of 98 per cent in the value of goods sent there. Egypt also registered a growth of 28 per cent against results from February. Exports to Iraq and Yemen fell by eight per cent and 11 per cent respectively.
The study found exporting to countries which are not part of the Council was less concentrated on a single nation. Destinations such as Libya, India, Jordan and Ethiopia accounted for between three and eight per cent of the total number of products shipped outside of the GCC.